Skip to main content
Park Queue TimesPQT

Busch Gardens Tampa
vs
Six Flags Discovery Kingdom

On a typical day Busch Gardens Tampa queues less: about 11 minutes a ride against 25 at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, a difference of roughly 14 minutes on every queue you join.

See both right nowCompare other parks

01 · On a typical day

What you would normally queue.

Averages across recent weeks, so one broken ride or one wet Tuesday cannot decide it. This is the comparison to plan a trip on; the live figures below are the one to act on today.

Busch Gardens Tampa and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom compared on their typical recorded queue times
TypicallyBusch Gardens TampaUnited StatesSix Flags Discovery KingdomUnited States
Average wait per ride 11 min (best of the two)25 min
Rides with recorded waits 1117 (best of the two)
Longest typical queue Congo River Rapids18 minBATMAN: The Ride45 min
Shortest typical queue Air Grover5 minWave Swinger5 min
Average ride uptime Share of opening hours a ride is running73%84% (best of the two)

Averaged across every ride at each park with recorded waits. A ride that never opened is left out, so a park is not flattered by counting a shut ride as a queue of zero.

02 · Right now

Both parks, this minute.

Live queue times at both parks. These fill in as soon as the page loads, and keep updating while you are here.

Busch Gardens Tampa and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom compared on live queue times
Right nowBusch Gardens TampaUnited StatesSix Flags Discovery KingdomUnited States
Average wait right now --
Rides open --
Opening hours today --
Longest queue --
Shortest queue --

These keep refreshing while this page is open. A closed park posts no waits, so its rows read as dashes rather than zeroes.

Verdict, on a typical day On a typical day Busch Gardens Tampa queues less: about 11 minutes a ride against 25 at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, a difference of roughly 14 minutes on every queue you join.

03 · Choosing

Which one is your day out.

Every line here is earned by one of the figures above - nothing is a generic sentence with a park name dropped into it.

Pick Busch Gardens Tampa if…

  • You want shorter queues: Busch Gardens Tampa averages 11 minutes a ride against 25 at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom
  • Congo River Rapids is on your list - it is Busch Gardens Tampa's longest typical queue at about 18 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Busch Gardens Tampa's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

Pick Six Flags Discovery Kingdom if…

  • You will accept a longer queue - 25 minutes a ride here against 11 at Busch Gardens Tampa - for what Six Flags Discovery Kingdom has that Busch Gardens Tampa does not
  • You want more to do: 17 rides here have recorded wait data against 11 at Busch Gardens Tampa
  • You would rather not find rides shut: Six Flags Discovery Kingdom's rides run 84% of opening hours against 73% at Busch Gardens Tampa
  • BATMAN: The Ride is on your list - it is Six Flags Discovery Kingdom's longest typical queue at about 45 minutes, so it is the one to do first
  • You want Six Flags Discovery Kingdom's own character - the rides, theming and atmosphere described below

04 · The parks

What each one is.

Busch Gardens Tampa

Busch Gardens Tampa Bay combines a full theme park with a 300-acre zoo, making it one of the largest combined attractions in the US. The coaster line-up is exceptional: Iron Gwazi (one of the world's top-rated roller coasters), SheiKra (a 200-foot dive coaster), Kumba, Montu (an inverted coaster), Cobra's Curse spinning coaster, and the classic Python. African animal exhibits include rhinos, giraffes and tigers.

Florida summer heat drives queue times into early mornings, while Howl-O-Scream, Christmas Town and US school holidays are the busiest periods. Weekdays in September, October and January stay dramatically calmer. Check live wait times for Iron Gwazi and SheiKra the moment you arrive, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek date for marathon coaster days.

Busch Gardens Tampa live queue times

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom sits in Vallejo, California, on San Francisco Bay's northern edge. The park combines a theme park with a marine-animal section, running coasters like Medusa (the West Coast's first floorless), Kong (an inverted coaster), Superman: Ultimate Flight, Joker 4-D Free Fly Coaster, and the newer DC Stunt Coaster. Dolphin, sea lion and bird shows run throughout the day.

Bay Area weekend visits, California school holidays, and the Fright Fest event drive Discovery Kingdom's peak crowds. Weekdays in April, September and October are dramatically quieter, with queue times on most rides staying short. Check live wait times for Medusa and Superman on arrival, and use our crowd calendar to pick a midweek date for shorter waits. The bayside setting makes for pleasant walking even on quieter days.

Six Flags Discovery Kingdom live queue times

05 · Questions

Busch Gardens Tampa or Six Flags Discovery Kingdom?

Which is better, Busch Gardens Tampa or Six Flags Discovery Kingdom?

If you are judging on queues, Busch Gardens Tampa: it averages about 11 minutes a ride on a typical day against 25 at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom, roughly 14 minutes back on every queue you join. Busch Gardens Tampa has 11 rides with recorded waits against 17 at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Six Flags Discovery Kingdom also runs its rides more reliably - 84% of opening hours against 73%.

Which has shorter queues, Busch Gardens Tampa or Six Flags Discovery Kingdom?

Busch Gardens Tampa, by about 14 minutes a ride. On a typical day Busch Gardens Tampa averages 11 minutes against 25 at Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. Queues still move hour by hour, and a midweek day outside school holidays beats the gap at either park. See Busch Gardens Tampa best time to visit and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom best time to visit to pick a quiet day.

Can I visit Busch Gardens Tampa and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom in the same trip?

Yes - both parks are in United States, so a two-park trip is realistic over a long weekend. Split the days so you start at whichever opens earliest and drive to the other in the evening.

How many rides does each park have?

See the tables above for ride counts - or jump to Busch Gardens Tampa and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom for the full ride lists.

Is Busch Gardens Tampa bigger than Six Flags Discovery Kingdom?

By rides we track waits for, Six Flags Discovery Kingdom is the bigger day out: 17 rides against 11. Acreage matters less than how many you can actually get on, which comes down to queues and opening hours - and on those Busch Gardens Tampa is the quicker park.

Then pick
the quiet day.

Both parks have a crowd calendar with six weeks of forecast and the best day left to go.

Busch Gardens Tampa calendarSix Flags Discovery Kingdom calendarCompare other parks